# Is "The Big Bounce" by Elmore Leonard a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Big Bounce by Elmore Leonard (Gold Medal Books, 1969) is identified by: True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal d1958 (1969), the printed price. Paperback is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal d1958
- , the printed price
- Leonard's first crime novel and first contemporary (non-Western) novel; rejected by many publishers and issued as a PBO. Gold Medal logo and catalog number; first printing has no later-printing statement
- A key, sought Leonard PBO
- Publisher imprint reads Gold Medal Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Elmore Leonard |
| Publisher | Gold Medal Books |
| Year | 1969 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal d1958 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal d1958 (1969), the printed price. Leonard's first crime novel and first contemporary (non-Western) novel; rejected by many publishers and issued as a PBO. Gold Medal logo and catalog number; first printing has no later-printing statement. A key, sought Leonard PBO.

## Is this the true first?
Paperback is the true first. Reissued repeatedly (and after the 1969 and 2004 films); those are reprints/first-thus. There was no contemporaneous hardcover.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition. First Gold Medal d1958 printing carries the original the printed price; later printings raise price and add printing data; tie-ins postdate the films.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Big Bounce* by Elmore Leonard a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-big-bounce
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.